On consistency and taming a Tiger

This week's top quotes provide a bit of everything

Here are some of the notable quotes from around Major League Baseball this week:

"It's kind of hard to believe. I just try to be consistent year in and year out, because if you're consistent, good things happen. Being consistent is something that gets overlooked at times, but every player strives to be consistent."

-Derek Jeter, commenting on becoming the all-time hits leader among shortstops. His single on Sunday pushed him past Luis Aparicio. Jeter, who has 2,699 hits overall and 2,683 as a shortstop, needs just 23 hits to surpass Lou Gehrig's all-time Yankees hit total of 2,721.
(New York Daily News)

"I don't know about brave. Maybe stupid."

-Adrian Beltre on his decision to stay in the game after taking a one-hop shot to his groin on a day when he did not wear a cup.
(Seattle Times)

"When you first start hearing about [autism], you don't know what's going on. You want answers -- 'why?' and all that stuff. But I saw it as a blessing, that God chose us to raise this special child. He's been nothing but a pleasure. He's my buddy, and we have a special relationship."

-Russ Springer discussing his son, Jake, who has autism, a development disorder that can make interacting and communicating with others difficult. Springer and his wife, Kelly, have a foundation, Angel Boy Foundation, that helps raise money for families to get in-home care for children with autism.
(St. Petersburg Times)

"Normally, you feel you can get away and dodge it, and I remember the ball came halfway, didn't think I was going to be able to get out of the way so I just braced for it. The scariest thing was not so much getting hit, but seeing the pitch coming towards me and knowing I was going to get hit."

-David Wright after getting hit in the batting helmet by a fastball on Saturday.
(New York Daily News)

"Now that you are in the big leagues, you have to do what you can do to stay. Make people believe that you belong."

- Recently recalled Baltimore rookie Michael Aubrey, on what he has to do to stay in the Major Leagues.
(Baltimore Sun)

"I felt confident about the way things were going to go. I think it would have gone really, really well. I was feeling very good. I had a good tempo."

"I went out and did what I set forth to do -- got them to put the ball in play and relied on my defense."

-Jamie Moyer, who, after 172 consecutive starts, worked in relief on Tuesday night in the Phillies' 5-1 win over the Diamondbacks. Moyer pitched six innings, giving up just two hits.
(Philadelphia Inquirer)

"I can be a sparkplug for the lineup, run down some balls in the outfield and get on base, stealing some bases and scoring some runs and mixing in some extra-base hits. I will try to go out and do what I've done all year long and hopefully help the team win."

- Cincinnati rookie Drew Stubbs on what he sees as his role now that he's been called up to the Major Leagues. Stubbs was the Reds' 2006 first-round Draft pick.
(MLB.com)

"You can really count on him now. We've tried to work him into more meaningful situations, and he's ... good right now."

"Believe it or not, we preach taking pitches, working the count, going the other way. We hadn't seen it. We have a bunch of guys free-swinging and hacking. But now, all of sudden, they see a guy in the lineup doing those things, and they go, 'Hey, this may work.'"

- Marlins manager Fredi Gonzalez on the impact of recently acquired Nick Johnson on the rest of the team.
(South Florida Sun-Sentinel)

"I'll pitch whatever innings they ask me to. We'll see what's going to happen. They made a decision, and away we go."

-Carlos Marmol, after being named the Cubs' closer earlier this week.
(MLB.com)

"[Wil] gets recognized in New York more than here."

-Yormarie Nieves, wife of Nationals catcher Wil Nieves, comparing the fan bases in New York and Washington, D.C.
(Washington Post)

"I have a minor headache and, when I stand up, I feel a little bit dizzy sometimes. They basically told me to rest. I just feel lucky to be alive and [to] go out on the mound next time."

-Hiroki Kuroda on the effects of being hit in the head by a linedrive off the bat of Rusty Ryal.
(Los Angeles Times)

"Nate is our best pinch-hitter, so it's nice to have him there. It's not something he wants to hear, but he'll get some starts. It's not easy not writing Nate's name in the lineup. He's not in there today, but he's going to get in there on pretty much of a regular basis."

"One guy asked me the other day if Bobby has changed me. We talk about it more, but I've been trying to do this since 2006. I started on my own, because I knew if I wanted to be a good leadoff batter, I had to find other ways to get on base."

-Chone Figgins on the influence of Bobby Abreu on his newfound patience at the plate.
(Los Angeles Times)

"I don't play golf, and I'm not a golf fan, but I wanted him to beat Tiger. When he did, I was jumping around the clubhouse like, 'Oh yeah!'"

"It ended up on a good note, too. That was a nice way to finish the week."

-Mark Ellis, who capped what proved to be his AL Player of the Week with a game-winning home run for the A's on Sunday.
(San Francisco Chronicle)

"It's been a constant struggle, and it has been a learning experience, but, yeah, I'll be happy when it's over so I can get to the offseason and work on some things and get back to doing what I'm accustomed to doing. First I've got to finish up strong and have some things to work on in the offseason."

"I've hit .300 in the Minors before, and it was a pretty down year for me last year with the average. But if I can get it up into the .290s -- even with all the strikeouts -- that would be awesome."

-Mark Reynolds talking about the possibility of hitting .300 for the Diamondbacks this season. He hit .263 in April, .271 in May, .286 in June, .284 in July and was hitting .348 through his first 13 games in August. His .369 average since the All-Star break ranked third among NL hitters.
(Arizona Republic)

"I haven't thought about that, because I've been trying to work to get back just to be able to pitch. I'm a New York Met today, I'm happy to be a Met. And if something like that happens, then I'll go somewhere else and pitch. Let's just see how this seven weeks go before we start making life-altering changes."

-Billy Wagner commenting on the possibility of being traded by the Mets before Sept. 1.
(Newsday)

"I don't know if you'd call it being in the zone, but I know I wasn't in any zone before I got to Milwaukee. I just made some adjustments that worked."

-Adrian Gonzalez, commenting about his hot streak at the plate after being named the NL Player of the Week for the second time this season and third time in his career.
(San Diego Union-Tribune)

"I desperately want to experience that again. I'll do whatever I can to help us get there, even if it's a small thing."

-Gregg Zaun, commenting on his chances of making the playoffs with the Rays, who claimed him off waivers last week from Baltimore.
(Tampa Tribune)

"There's a number of things that are contributing to this. Overall command, strike-throwing ability, certainly is there. But I think the mental component of his game has been very consistent, very much under control. He's one that thrives on adrenaline to get him to a certain level of competitive state, but it's not to the point where it's overdone, that negatively affects his ability to make pitches from hitter to hitter or from inning to inning."

- Boston pitching coach John Farrell, commenting on pitcher Josh Beckett, who is 12-2 with a 2.17 ERA in his last 18 starts. Batters are hitting only .208 during that span.
(Boston Globe)

"Yeah, I should hit well here. I think it's a matter of me trying to do too much for the home fans. I want to go out there and play unbelievable. Sometimes, I don't stay within myself when I'm at home."

-Chicago White Sox third baseman Gordon Beckham on playing at U.S. Cellular Field, where his OPS is 381 points lower than it is on the road.
(MLB.com)

"When you're out for two months, you kind of lose your swing a little bit. It will come. Getting the first [home run] is always the hardest one."

-Lastings Milledge, after missing time with a finger injury.
(MLB.com)